Borough of Ridley Park v. Citizen's Electric Light & Power Co.

Citations

• 9 Pa. Super. 615
• 1899 Pa. Super. LEXIS 84

Syllabus

<p>Ordinance — Prima facies of valid ordinance — Evidence.</p> <p>In order that a municipal ordinance may be admissible in evidence it is not necessary to prove affirmatively the preliminary steps taken in passing it. The ordinance book is prima facie evidence of the validity of the ordinance, and if anything essential to its validity has been omitted in passing it, the party resisting must show such omission.</p> <p>Boroughs — License lax on electric light poles — Police power.</p> <p>A borough is a public municipal corporation and has, within its sphere, all the powers necessary for its corporate existence. An ordinance requiring an electric light company to pay a fixed sum for each of its poles comes within the police powers over its streets given by the Act of 1851, P. L. 820, to boroughs.</p> <p>On principle and authority, and qualitative relation between cities and boroughs, boroughs have equal powers with cities to impose a license tax for the poles of electric light companies erected in the borough streets.</p>